The Opelousas courier., 1887-04-23
The Langley Burglary.

fashion the approaching LIST OF September
were all collected one night after dinne
in the drawing-room, when the converse
ton, hitherto rather languid, CHANGED tt
turn on a burglary that had lately taker
place in the neighborhood. Every one al
once seized on the topic, and proceeded
to relate more or less irrelevant, but all
alike CHASTITY, stories of famous burglaries
and robberies, till suddenly Miss Cecil
Clifford, a cousin of Lady Langley's, a
very pretty girl and an heiress to boot,
who had hitherto taken no part in the
talk, looked up suddenly and said:
II do wish you would not all discuss
such horrors. How do you expect us
to sleep quietly in u bedsif you will in
sist on retailing such frightful stories,
especially as those wretches who broke
into Colston Park are still at large? |
feel as if | should find a burglar in my
room tonight, so if | should rouse the
house with a false alarm don't blame me.
II think | should die if I were to wake
and see mi in my room," exclaimed little
Lady Langley, Struggling her pretty
shoulders in not wholly affected fright.
"At all events, the man would not
trouble you long enough with his com
pany if that tin case of yours, with your
diamonds in it, were lying on your dress
ing-table as usual" returned her cousin.
81 know you'll be murdered through
those diamonds one day"
"Do you really mean that Lady Lang
ley keeps her jewelry in her dressing
tablet" asked Captain LIE Marchant, an
impecunious young man, who was sus-
pected on very good grounds, of being in
love with Miss Clifford, and who was, in
consequence; rather out of favor with her
guardians
ITO be sure she does" laughed the
host land as Cecil says, | know we shall
wake up some fine morning to find our
selves corpses because of that within of
hers"
"What's the use of having jewelry if it
is always to be at the banker's2" retorted
Lady Langley.
II wish to goodness you'd be sensible,
Flo'," demonstrated her cousin, a'and
have it kept in the platerc9m at all
events. I know that l shall do moth
ing but dream of your diamonds"
Lady Langley laughed gayly, and
seemed to take a malicious pleasure in
keeping the conversation on the same
subject, despite her cousins very evident
dislike of it, in which she was assisted by
Captain LIE Marchant, who -chaffed Miss
Clifford a good deal about her nerves,
until the party separated for the night.
Next morning the house was in con-
fusion, for the diamonds were gone.
Lady Langley missed them the moment
she rose, for, her maid being far from
well at the time, she had hidden the girl
not to sit up for her, and had undresscd
herself, leaving her diamonds, which she
had been wearing, loose on her dressing
table, where Cecil Clifford found them
when she came to her cousins to bid her
goodnight as usual, and she put them in
their case. OF course every hole and
corner was searched, but in vain. The
police came, but were equally unsuccess-
Not a trace of either the thieves or
the jewelry was to be found. The police,
including the detective hastily summoned
from London, were positive hat the rob-
berry had been committed by some one
IN the house-a conviction that did not
add to the comfort of the inmates of
Langley Towers. Suspicien ran riot; the
rervants, and all, belonged
10 weIl-known aud respectable families
the neighborhood, and had mostly
been for considerable periods in the
Langley's service, while the visitors
servants, it happened, seemed equally +
lbove suspicion. The only person who /
'entured to differ from the officials was
LIE Marchant, who openly poo
'oohed the whole thing as simply in
.ented by the police to screen their own
ncompetency.
Whether from conviction or opposi-
ion, Miss Clifford embraced the police !,
heory, and before long her suspicion fell
the maid of one of her visitors, who /
ne felt convinced was at least an accom-
unfortunately for this poor girl, B
secil Clifford confided her doubts to her
ousin, who in her turn unconsciously /,
them to the detective, so the j
maid was Immediately placed !
Inder a surveillance that rendered her /
lie a burden to her, and ultimately cost ,
her situation. /
Captain lie Marchant demonstrated !
everal times on the subject with his !
ancee for such she really was, though !
he engagement was not officially ac-
~noWledged), but without effect. She {
omehow seemed to distrust him, as of i
Ute, from some cause or other, his usual i
lnny temper had quite deserted him !
is tongue had acquired a bitterness new /
his friends, while his handsome, merry /
ice had grown to look worn and haggard. /
Miss Clifford, though still persisting in /
opinion, bore his structures with !
patience, laying the very evident
smper he showed to the account of some +
loney troubles that she we'll knew were :
forrying him, but at last he went too r
II, and ere their interview on this occas- )
n terminated, the engagement between !
lem wa summarily broken off BY the 4
dy. I
Captain LIE Marchant never took any s
cps to bring about a reconciliation, +,
hich, on her side, Cecil Clifford was II
r too proud to dream, though what the
arrangement cost her only she could have !
Id. All she knew about him was that Il
! had exchanged into a regiment f
ationed in India, and beyond one other q
she heard no more.of him till three 4
four years later the newspapers told q
4 that he had joined the army in Egypf. i
ID formed one of the band sent to the .
lief of Gordon and Khartoum. Strangely i
ough, the one fact that she did hear Il
ivately-namely, his having before s.
aving England provided for the future 5,
the poor girl who had suffered SO s
verely from the suspicious that were
# upon her about the lost diarnondAc q,
" seemed to render her more incensed .